[-empyre-] Situated body, Situated practices

Fri Sep 13 22:44:18 AEST 2019

I want to thank Sandy in particular for her lovely comment on ageng.
Turning 58 was hard, particularly as i also live in trans time and there's
i'm about 18 years old. Its hard being an 18 year old in a 58 year old
body. But on reflection: my 58 year old body works pretty well. My 58 year
old self has a little wisdom, i hope. Meanwhile my 18 year old trans self
can get anxious and is very naive but she is so exciting and interested in
everything. So 58 is keeping 18 safe; 18 is making sure 58 is never bored.

Returning to rave culture as a 58/18 year old has been a trip. The
abstractness of techno makes it available for my body, for gender euphoria.
Its also good for my crip body. I don't often cop to that but: i was born
with club feet and only walk because of multiple childhood surgeries. Of
which i have traumatic memories. Both my gender and crip dysphoric bodies
respond really well to techno.

Funny story: when i met the trans woman who would become my official 'big
sister', she arranged my re-entry into rave culture. Trans women are always
free at this particular  one and skip the line, but i needed my hand held
the first time. We just marched right in. This was in contrast to what had
just happened, only twenty minutes prior: three transsexuals called an uber
and stood waiting on the sidewalk. When the car arrived it refused to take
us....

Other part of the funny story: i was clocked at the rave by the
co-organizer, who as it happens is doing a PhD and had cited me. We met and
talked about the situationists. I'm now a plus-one on the door at all
events.

That particular world works because it is not mediated. There's a strict
no-photo policy. Very little shows up on insta other than vague
announcements with a date, never an address. I think we have to make worlds
like this now. Hide in plain sight.

M

On Fri, Sep 13, 2019 at 2:08 AM Jaimes Mayhew <jaimes.mayhew at gmail.com>
wrote:

> ----------empyre- soft-skinned space----------------------
> This is late- and I want to respond to EVERYTHING on this thread!
>
> This post is very me-centric, I apologize in advance.
>
> To start with networking as a trans person just looking for people:
> Friendster- I can’t remember how that platform worked well enough to
> remember exactly how I found a transman living in Baltimore when I moved
> here in 2007 from NYC/Boston but it must have taken some digging- here’s
> how I think it went:
>
> The beginning of my network in Baltimore was made for me after I performed
> in The Transmodern Festival in Baltimore in 2006 with The Institute for
> Infinitely Small things while I was still living in Boston. When I came
> here (Baltimore) to visit, I saw that they had LGB and one visible T people
> who were involved in the mainstream art community, which I had never seen
> before in any place I’d lived. Through a turn of mostly unrelated events, I
> moved to Baltimore for grad school after a short utopic-ish stint in NYC
> (where in 6 months I met so many iconic artists I admired but were mostly
> not trans, while I worked at a national LGBT non-profit law firm who
> refused to cover my trans related medical expenses). When I knew I was
> moving to Baltimore, I think I connected to other trans people by finding
>  the leader of the  Baltimore  transmasculine  support group via the former
> “Gay and Lesbian Community Center Baltimore” website, then looking for him
> on Friendster, then sending him a message and so on...he used to take me
> bowling because that’s all we really had in common, and it was great.
>
> I mentioned MySpace before- I don’t know if I actually used it after all.
>
> I want to also comment on rave culture, because it was such a huge
> influence in my life.
> I haven’t been to a rave since the late 90’s- but even then in Denver
> while I was in high school,  I felt more comfortable *not* being held to
> sexual norms in the rave scene than in the mostly racist skinhead punk
> scene in Denver at the time. My friends and I, who were queer without that
> language, had freedom to be ourselves, and dance as ourselves when we
> couldn’t do that where we lived. Rave was a utopia, even if temporary, and
> I’m so happy to see that people are still saying that.
>
>
>
> On Sep 12, 2019, at 2:17 AM, Allucquere Rosanne Stone <
> allucquere.stone at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> ----------empyre- soft-skinned space----------------------
>
> Hi McKenzie, this will have to be brief… Okay, let’s see...
>
> On Sep 11, 2019, at 10:02 AM, warkk <WarkK at newschool.edu> wrote:
>
> ----------empyre- soft-skinned space----------------------
>
> So Sandy:
> how has your thinking changed, or not, since The Empire Strikes Back: A
> Posttranssexual Manifesto?
>
>
> I used to think that TERFs had as much right to spout their vitriol as
> anyone else, and thinking this occasionally got me into deep trouble,
> because I’d respond as if I were in a rational debate with a rational
> person.  Now I agree with a growing consensus that there is a point beyond
> which speech acts are acts of violence, and you do not enter into “debate”
> or rational discussion with someone who calls into question your right to
> exist.  Now we have no-platforming.  Before it had a name, it was a
> strategy that TERFs used against us at every opportunity, and now we’re
> finally learning to return the favor.  I don’t think I’ve changed my
> position much in other ways in relation to the trans* manifesto.  What
> about you?  What about other folks?
>
>
> what do you think about the internet-spawned trans culture that sprang up,
> maybe mostly via tumblr?
>
>
> I love it, although I don’t always agree with the more extreme ones.  But
> the fact that we’ve reached the point at which young trans* can express
> extreme views on social media says it all, don’t you think?
>
>
> can you tell me a it about ageing? I just turned 58 and am already a
> middle aged woman…
>
>
> I can only tell you about aging from a personal perspective.  So ok, I’m,
> what, 82, 83, something?  I write, code, make stuff, and raise hell, active
> in several professional fields, sex is terrific…if anything, it gets better
> with time.  This isn’t a tell-all, so I’ll leave it at that.  I don’t hike,
> climb, or snowboard as much as I did, but I’m beginning to think that’s
> psychological.
>
> Anyway, if it’s words of encouragement you want, you can have all I’ve
> got, and I’ve got plenty.  I’m fully aware that my view is not a universal
> one, and I can’t speak for trans* folk who find aging hard.  But from this
> admittedly limited perspective, in this particular embodiment, I intend to
> keep on adventuring, theorizing, and making love with the throttle pushed
> up to 110% until my body simply explodes.  I invite you to join me.
>
> do you find resonances between the techniques for our bodies and for our
> ears? Sound and body technics?
>
>
> Sorry, I don’t know how to speak to that.  Maybe with a bit of reflection
> I’ll come up with something.  Besides, it’s getting late, and Shulea is
> trying to smoke me out of my cave and get me to post this.  What fun!
>
>
> oh i have so much more, but just for a start...
>
> M
>
>
>
> On Wed, Sep 11, 2019 at 11:56 AM warkk <WarkK at newschool.edu> wrote:
>
>> Thanks for those references. I don’t know that documentary. In the
>> overdeveloped world and perhaps elsewhere, all bodies, cis and trans, are
>> experiments held together by both technical experiments and aesthetic
>> experiments. Trans ppl don’t necessarily want to be seen as exceptional in
>> that regard. Personally we m in the Freak Pride camp, but a lot of
>> brothers, sisters and others just think of themselves as ordinary. The
>> right to be ordinary is also an important one. M
>>
>> On Wed, Sep 11, 2019 at 1:38 AM isabelle arvers <iarvers at gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> ----------empyre- soft-skinned space----------------------
>>> Hello everyone,
>>>
>>> I so much agree with what has just been said;)
>>> On the subject one of the most beautiful things I have heard so far is
>>> in Bixa Travesty documentary in which Mc Linn Da Quebrada says that our
>>> body is our own territory of experimentation;)
>>> also loved the idea of the documentary Sea Horse about the man who had a
>>> baby,
>>> Cheers
>>>
>>> Isabelle
>>>
>>> [image:
>>> http://www.isabellearvers.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/animLogo.gif]
>>> <http://www.isabellearvers.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/animLogo.gif>
>>> Isabelle Arvers
>>> Curator, art critic and artist
>>> Wattsap: +33 661 998 386
>>> http://www.isabellearvers.com
>>> Director of Kareron www.kareron.com <http://www.kareron.com/>
>>> https://www.facebook.com/ArtGamesWorldTour
>>> twitter: @zabarvers
>>> instagram.com/zabarvers
>>> youtube.com/zabarvers
>>> https://vimeo.com/isabellearvers
>>> Skype ID: iarvers
>>>
>>>
>>> Le mer. 11 sept. 2019 à 13:13, Jaimes Mayhew <jaimes.mayhew at gmail.com>
>>> a écrit :
>>>
>>>> ----------empyre- soft-skinned space----------------------
>>>> Hi everyone,
>>>> I have been in this listserve since 2008 and I can’t recall ever
>>>> posting, but I was inspired to share that seeing this conversation made my
>>>> heart swell. I am also transgender, and transitioned early in my career.
>>>>
>>>> I’m struck that just 15-20 years ago, seeing this kind of conversation
>>>> about trans* people on a list for art people seemed impossible. I’ve found
>>>> people who are trans* in every city I’ve lived in via social media as a way
>>>> to make friends and find allies. First Friendster, then MySpace and now
>>>> Facebook.
>>>>
>>>> McKenzie, I am a fan of your work, and was so excited to see you
>>>> present at CAA in NYC a couple of years ago. I remember seeing you and
>>>> wondering if you might be family.
>>>>
>>>> What else can I say? I’m grateful for this moment.
>>>>
>>>> Sent from my phone. Please excuse any typos or brevity.
>>>>
>>>> On Sep 10, 2019, at 6:05 AM, warkk <WarkK at newschool.edu> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> ----------empyre- soft-skinned space----------------------
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> When i came out (on Facebook, natch), Sandy sent me a message which
>>>> said: "Now you know why, when i met you, i made you nervous."
>>>>
>>>> True story. I had so much internalized transphobia because i knew i was
>>>> clinging on to masculinity by a thread.
>>>>
>>>> "The internet" has a lot to answer for. It turns out media designed for
>>>> extracting surplus information out of us is a great breeding ground for
>>>> Nazis.
>>>>
>>>> Then again, it is a space where trans ppl can find each other. I'm
>>>> transitioning with the help of big sisters i know IRL -- but met on
>>>> twitter.
>>>>
>>>> Then again again, its a space for ppl who hate us. Its exhausting
>>>> playing whack-a-mole with ppl who think you are not human.
>>>>
>>>> The actual German-style Nazis started with queer and trans ppl too. The
>>>> Nazi-book burning pictures you see most often are of the Hirschfeld library.
>>>>
>>>> Who was Hirschfield? Who was Harry Benjamin? What was the medicalized
>>>> model of the transsexual? Well for that you'd need to read this:
>>>> http://www.sterneck.net/gender/stone-posttranssexuel/index.php
>>>>
>>>> -- in which Sandy became big sister to us all.
>>>>
>>>> Ironically enough, for complicated reasons, i'm among sisters who all
>>>> call ourselves transsexuals again.
>>>>
>>>> But then one of themes is change, right?
>>>>
>>>> On Tue, Sep 10, 2019 at 2:17 AM Allucquere Rosanne Stone <
>>>> allucquere.stone at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> ----------empyre- soft-skinned space----------------------
>>>>> Hi folks, Sandy here.  McKenzie and I met in the mythic time of the
>>>>> latter part of the XXth Century, when she (then he) met a busful of
>>>>> middle-aged theoreticians debarking at a conference venue.  McKenzie
>>>>> glanced at me and then stared with an expression I interpreted as loathing,
>>>>> and which later I realized was something more akin to terror.  I thought
>>>>> that they might be an F2M afraid of being outed, so out of courtesy I gave
>>>>> them a wide berth.  In retrospect I wish I hadn’t.  Roads not taken, ships
>>>>> that pass in the night…
>>>>>
>>>>> At any rate, we’re here now, and it’s a great pleasure.
>>>>>
>>>>> Yeah, I’ve seen a lot of young transpeople in what at some point in
>>>>> the past was a general catchphrase for personal turbulence: going through
>>>>> changes.  Right. Ch-ch-ch-changes.  Who knew.
>>>>>
>>>>> Well.  The present moment is so chockfull of changes.  A close
>>>>> relative, an intelligent, perceptive, empathetic and caring person, is a
>>>>> Trumpist.  J Epstein, an intelligent, perceptive philanthropist, was a
>>>>> raging pedophile.  Valerie Plame has launched a campaign video that either
>>>>> reduces or elevates politics to the level of Hollywood spectacle —
>>>>> literally… all it lacks is Jason Statham and Vin Diesel getting out of the
>>>>> car behind her.  A woman has given birth to a cow’s head.  We’re all busy
>>>>> slouching toward our particular Bethlehem.  What’s not to like?
>>>>>
>>>>> I’ll say something about change that’s more related to this thread
>>>>> later.  This is just a little introductory blurt until I have more time.
>>>>>
>>>>> Sandy
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Allucquere Rosanne Stone
>>>>> Drive-by Theoretician
>>>>>
>>>>> Faust: How comes it then that thou art out of hell?
>>>>> Meph: Why this is hell, nor am I out of it.
>>>>>
>>>>> Sent from my iPhone. Please enjoy all autocorrects and typos.
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> empyre forum
>>>>> empyre at lists.artdesign.unsw.edu.au
>>>>> http://empyre.library.cornell.edu
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> McKenzie Wark (they/she)
>>>> Professor of Media and Culture
>>>> EUGENE LANG COLLEGE
>>>> 65 w11th st, NEW YORK, NY 10011
>>>> <https://www.google.com/maps/search/65+w11th+st,+NEW+YORK,+NY+10011?entry=gmail&source=g>
>>>> warkk at newschool.edu
>>>> <http://www.newschool.edu/marketing-communication/email-signature.html#>
>>>> T 212 229 5100 2241 / M 646 3697266 / @mckenziewark / room #456
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> empyre forum
>>>> empyre at lists.artdesign.unsw.edu.au
>>>> http://empyre.library.cornell.edu
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> empyre forum
>>>> empyre at lists.artdesign.unsw.edu.au
>>>> http://empyre.library.cornell.edu
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> empyre forum
>>> empyre at lists.artdesign.unsw.edu.au
>>> http://empyre.library.cornell.edu
>>
>> --
>> McKenzie Wark (they/she)
>> *Professor of Media and Culture*
>> EUGENE LANG COLLEGE
>> 65 w11th st, NEW YORK, NY 10011
>> warkk at newschool.edu
>> <http://www.newschool.edu/marketing-communication/email-signature.html#>
>> T 212 229 5100 2241 / M 646 3697266 / @mckenziewark / room #456
>>
>>
>
> --
> McKenzie Wark (they/she)
> *Professor of Media and Culture*
> EUGENE LANG COLLEGE
> 65 w11th st, NEW YORK, NY 10011
> warkk at newschool.edu
> <http://www.newschool.edu/marketing-communication/email-signature.html#>
> T 212 229 5100 2241 / M 646 3697266 / @mckenziewark / room #456
>
> _______________________________________________
> empyre forum
> empyre at lists.artdesign.unsw.edu.au
> http://empyre.library.cornell.edu
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> empyre forum
> empyre at lists.artdesign.unsw.edu.au
> http://empyre.library.cornell.edu
>
> _______________________________________________
> empyre forum
> empyre at lists.artdesign.unsw.edu.au
> http://empyre.library.cornell.edu

-- 

McKenzie Wark (they/she)
*Professor of Media and Culture*
EUGENE LANG COLLEGE
65 w11th st, NEW YORK, NY 10011

warkk at newschool.edu
<http://www.newschool.edu/marketing-communication/email-signature.html#>
T 212 229 5100 2241 / M 646 3697266 / @mckenziewark / room #456
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